Graham: Trump Not Willing to Budge on Border Funding

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., on Sunday said President Donald Trump wouldn’t compromise on border funding as the partial federal government shutdown entered its ninth day.

“The president is firm in his commitment to make sure we get money for border security and it will never be a 60-vote deal in the Senate that doesn’t include money for border security-wall,” he told reporters after having lunch with Trump at the White House.

“The one thing we talked about is making deals. There is a lot of distrust in town and I guess you can blame both sides for that, but after lunch, I never have been more encouraged if we can get people talking. We can find our way out of this mess.”

Top Republicans and Democrats on Sunday were continuing to dig in with no resolution in sight.

“He says he needs more, yet there’s no plan [for] how the money is going to be spent or any analysis on what’s most effective to secure the border,” Sen. Jon Tester, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Homeland Security, on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

“I think we can do it with technology and manpower, and much more effectively than with a wall.”

Trump wants $5 billion in border funding, but Democrats have whiffed.

Graham said he believes a compromise on border security and U.S. immigration policy could end an impasse.

“At the end of the day, there’s a deal to be had,” he said. “We need to start talking again.”